Asked by: Andy McDonald (Labour - Middlesbrough and Thornaby East)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment her Department has made of the potential impact of the real terms value of pay awards through the School Teachers Pay Review Body process in the 2025-26 financial year on trends in the (a) recruitment and (b) retention of school teachers.
Answered by Catherine McKinnell - Minister of State (Education)
Pay for teachers and leaders in maintained schools is set through an annual statutory process with independent recommendations made by the School Teachers’ Review Body (STRB) based on a range of evidence, including the real terms value of teacher pay.
While in power, this government has accepted their recommendations in full.
This year’s pay award of 4% exceeds forecasts for inflation and provides a competitive salary for both new and existing teachers. Based on forecasts for inflation across the 2025/26 academic year, this is a real-terms increase of around 1.5%.
The department wants teaching to be an attractive and expert profession, to ensure that our children have the expert teachers they need to achieve and thrive and tackle recruitment and retention issues. That is also why we are committed to delivering the manifesto pledge to recruit 6,500 teachers across secondary and special schools, and in our colleges, over the course of this Parliament and there are already signs that our Plan for Change is working.
The workforce has grown by 2,346 full-time equivalent between 2023/24 and 2024/25, in secondary and special schools over the last year. Additionally, our future school teacher pipeline is growing. As of May 2025, there are 11% more trainees who have accepted offers to train as secondary subjects, including in priority subjects such as physics, where we have seen a 43% increase in acceptances compared to last year.
Asked by: Andy McDonald (Labour - Middlesbrough and Thornaby East)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment her Department has made of the potential impact of the real terms value of pay awards through the School Teachers Pay Review Body process on teachers in each year since 2010.
Answered by Catherine McKinnell - Minister of State (Education)
Pay for teachers and leaders in maintained schools is set through an annual statutory process with independent recommendations made by the School Teachers’ Review Body (STRB) based on a range of evidence, including the real terms value of teacher pay.
While in power, this government has accepted their recommendations in full.
This year’s pay award of 4% exceeds forecasts for inflation and provides a competitive salary for both new and existing teachers. Based on forecasts for inflation across the 2025/26 academic year, this is a real-terms increase of around 1.5%.
The department wants teaching to be an attractive and expert profession, to ensure that our children have the expert teachers they need to achieve and thrive and tackle recruitment and retention issues. That is also why we are committed to delivering the manifesto pledge to recruit 6,500 teachers across secondary and special schools, and in our colleges, over the course of this Parliament and there are already signs that our Plan for Change is working.
The workforce has grown by 2,346 full-time equivalent between 2023/24 and 2024/25, in secondary and special schools over the last year. Additionally, our future school teacher pipeline is growing. As of May 2025, there are 11% more trainees who have accepted offers to train as secondary subjects, including in priority subjects such as physics, where we have seen a 43% increase in acceptances compared to last year.
Asked by: Andy McDonald (Labour - Middlesbrough and Thornaby East)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment her Department has made of the level of confidence of workforce unions in the School Teachers Pay Review Body process.
Answered by Catherine McKinnell - Minister of State (Education)
Pay for teachers and leaders in maintained schools is set through an annual statutory process with independent recommendations made by the School Teachers’ Review Body (STRB).
In making recommendations, the STRB consider a range of written and oral evidence from statutory consultees, including the department, employer representatives and unions. This year, that process has resulted in the government accepting the STRB‘s recommendation for a 4% pay award for teachers and leaders in maintained schools.
Combined with last year’s 5.5% award, this above-inflation pay award means school teachers will see an increase in their pay of almost 10% over two years.
The department has also brought in changes to encourage flexible working and to more fairly reward part-time teachers for taking on additional responsibilities.
Unions continue to engage positively with, and make valuable contributions towards, the pay round process. Unions involved with the process (including NEU, NASUWT, Community, NAHT, and ASCL) have published statements in response to the announcement, which are available on their websites.
Asked by: Andy McDonald (Labour - Middlesbrough and Thornaby East)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment her Department has made of the potential merits of introducing regularised direct pay negotiations with workforce trades unions on (a) recruitment and (b) retention.
Answered by Catherine McKinnell - Minister of State (Education)
Pay for teachers and leaders in maintained schools is set through an annual statutory process with independent recommendations made by the School Teachers’ Review Body (STRB).
In making recommendations, the STRB consider a range of written and oral evidence from statutory consultees, including the department, employer representatives and unions. This year, that process has resulted in the government accepting the STRB‘s recommendation for a 4% pay award for teachers and leaders in maintained schools.
Combined with last year’s 5.5% award, this above-inflation pay award means school teachers will see an increase in their pay of almost 10% over two years.
The department has also brought in changes to encourage flexible working and to more fairly reward part-time teachers for taking on additional responsibilities.
Unions continue to engage positively with, and make valuable contributions towards, the pay round process. Unions involved with the process (including NEU, NASUWT, Community, NAHT, and ASCL) have published statements in response to the announcement, which are available on their websites.
Asked by: Andy McDonald (Labour - Middlesbrough and Thornaby East)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment she has made of the potential implications for her policies of the response of workforce unions to the pay awards set out in her Department's response to the School Teachers Pay Review Body report.
Answered by Catherine McKinnell - Minister of State (Education)
Pay for teachers and leaders in maintained schools is set through an annual statutory process with independent recommendations made by the School Teachers’ Review Body (STRB).
In making recommendations, the STRB consider a range of written and oral evidence from statutory consultees, including the department, employer representatives and unions. This year, that process has resulted in the government accepting the STRB‘s recommendation for a 4% pay award for teachers and leaders in maintained schools.
Combined with last year’s 5.5% award, this above-inflation pay award means school teachers will see an increase in their pay of almost 10% over two years.
The department has also brought in changes to encourage flexible working and to more fairly reward part-time teachers for taking on additional responsibilities.
Unions continue to engage positively with, and make valuable contributions towards, the pay round process. Unions involved with the process (including NEU, NASUWT, Community, NAHT, and ASCL) have published statements in response to the announcement, which are available on their websites.
Asked by: Andy McDonald (Labour - Middlesbrough and Thornaby East)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment her Department has made of the potential impact of the Government's proposed pay award on service provision.
Answered by Catherine McKinnell - Minister of State (Education)
High-quality teaching is the in-school factor that has the biggest positive impact on a child’s educational outcome. Ensuring there are sufficient, high-quality staff in our schools is therefore critical. This is why the government has pledged to recruit 6,500 additional expert teachers.
On 22 May, we announced this year’s above-inflation pay award of 4% which, combined with the 5.5% pay award last year, will mean school teachers in maintained schools will see an increase in their pay of almost 10% over two years.
The department is also ensuring that further financial incentives are targeted where the need for them is greatest. For example, we are offering targeted retention payments of up to £6,000 per year to teachers of key subjects working in disadvantaged areas in the first 5 years of their careers. We have also announced an initial teacher training financial incentives package for the 2025/26 recruitment cycle worth £233 million, a £37 million increase on the last cycle. This includes a range of measures, including bursaries worth £29,000 tax-free and scholarships worth £31,000 tax-free, to encourage talented trainees to teach key subjects.
We are already seeing positive signs that this investment and approach is starting to deliver. New government data shows there are 2,346 more teachers in secondary and special schools in England compared to last year, an increase of 1,400 and 900 respectively from the year before. Over 2,000 more people are also training to become secondary school teachers this year and over 2,500 more teachers are expected to stay in the profession over the next three years.
Asked by: Andy McDonald (Labour - Middlesbrough and Thornaby East)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment her Department has made of the potential merits of implementing a long-term strategy to improve school teachers’ pay in real terms through the School Teachers' Pay Review Body process.
Answered by Catherine McKinnell - Minister of State (Education)
Pay for teachers and leaders in maintained schools is set through an annual statutory process with independent recommendations made by the School Teachers’ Review Body (STRB) based on a range of evidence, including the real terms value of teacher pay.
While in power, this government has accepted their recommendations in full.
This year’s pay award of 4% exceeds forecasts for inflation and provides a competitive salary for both new and existing teachers. Based on forecasts for inflation across the 2025/26 academic year, this is a real-terms increase of around 1.5%.
The department wants teaching to be an attractive and expert profession, to ensure that our children have the expert teachers they need to achieve and thrive and tackle recruitment and retention issues. That is also why we are committed to delivering the manifesto pledge to recruit 6,500 teachers across secondary and special schools, and in our colleges, over the course of this Parliament and there are already signs that our Plan for Change is working.
The workforce has grown by 2,346 full-time equivalent between 2023/24 and 2024/25, in secondary and special schools over the last year. Additionally, our future school teacher pipeline is growing. As of May 2025, there are 11% more trainees who have accepted offers to train as secondary subjects, including in priority subjects such as physics, where we have seen a 43% increase in acceptances compared to last year.
Asked by: Andy McDonald (Labour - Middlesbrough and Thornaby East)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment her Department has made of the potential impact of reductions in funding for level seven apprenticeships on the availability of Chartered Town Planners in local government.
Answered by Janet Daby - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)
I refer my hon. Friend, the Member for Middlesbrough and Thornaby to the answer of 20 January 2025 to Question 23140.
Asked by: Andy McDonald (Labour - Middlesbrough and Thornaby East)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment her Department has made of the potential impact of reductions in funding for level seven apprenticeships on the availability of skilled workers in the NHS; and whether she has had discussions with the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care on this matter.
Answered by Janet Daby - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)
The government is committed to spreading opportunities and economic growth, supported by a strong skills system.
This government has an extremely challenging fiscal inheritance. There are tough choices that need to be taken on how funding should be prioritised in order to generate opportunities for young people that enable them to make a start in good, fulfilling careers, and the department will therefore be asking more employers to step forward and fund a significant number of level 7 apprenticeships themselves outside of the levy-funded Growth and Skills offer.
The department has received a wide range of representations, which it is currently considering. These have been received directly and via Skills England, which has engaged with a wide range of stakeholders on this matter and has shared its findings with the department.
The department recognises the importance of providing clarity as soon as possible on future funding for level 7 apprenticeships and will communicate next steps in due course.
The department also continues to work across government to tackle the skills needs of different sectors, including addressing the skills gaps in the health and social care industry which were identified in Skills England’s first report on driving growth and widening opportunities.
Asked by: Andy McDonald (Labour - Middlesbrough and Thornaby East)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment her Department has made of the potential impact of reductions in funding for level seven healthcare apprenticeships on the availability of Advanced Clinical Practitioners in the NHS.
Answered by Janet Daby - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)
The government is committed to spreading opportunities and economic growth, supported by a strong skills system.
This government has an extremely challenging fiscal inheritance. There are tough choices that need to be taken on how funding should be prioritised in order to generate opportunities for young people that enable them to make a start in good, fulfilling careers, and the department will therefore be asking more employers to step forward and fund a significant number of level 7 apprenticeships themselves outside of the levy-funded Growth and Skills offer.
The department has received a wide range of representations, which it is currently considering. These have been received directly and via Skills England, which has engaged with a wide range of stakeholders on this matter and has shared its findings with the department.
The department recognises the importance of providing clarity as soon as possible on future funding for level 7 apprenticeships and will communicate next steps in due course.
The department also continues to work across government to tackle the skills needs of different sectors, including addressing the skills gaps in the health and social care industry which were identified in Skills England’s first report on driving growth and widening opportunities.